All People Making a Difference
Francis Slakey moves from scaling heights to greening citiesThe physicist heads a new $5 million Georgetown Energy Prize that encourages midsize cities to develop innovative ways to slash energy use.
U.S. Tech Vets links military veterans with civilian jobsThe effort, through its online portal at www.ustechvets.org, matches national and regional companies with veterans who have technical skills.
Adam Braun hands out pencils 鈥� and hopeHis nonprofit Pencils of Promise has built more than 170 schools in Ghana, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Laos.
Difference MakerAfter the Boston Marathon bombings, Danny Bent took on a cross-country challengeThe athlete-adventurer co-founded a relay run called One Run for Boston that started in Los Angeles and ended at the marathon finish line to raise funds for victims.
Heather Fleming wants to solve poverty through better designFrustrated by the inequality she experienced as a Navajo, Fleming founded Catapult Design to create new products and services for impoverished communities.
New source of jobs for India's rural women (hint: it's in your shampoo)Growing seaweed rich in valuable chemicals 鈥� predicted to be worth $7 billion by 2018 鈥� is emerging as a source of employment for rural women in India.
Jeff Kirschner uses social media to fight litteringParticipants on Instagram photograph, geotag, label, and then dispose of litter. By identifying litter, he hopes to drive companies to reevaluate the kind of packaging they use.
Could you live below the line?The Live Below the Line project April 28-May 2 aims to help people understand extreme poverty more personally by spending only $1.50 a day on food.
Difference MakerLinda Rottenberg helps people pursue dreams 鈥� and create thousands of jobsShe's chief executive of Endeavor Global, a nonprofit group that gives a leg up to budding entrepreneurs.
Providing a safe haven for street kids in CongoA shelter in Kinshasa, Congo, provides aid, and sometimes a home, to children abandoned to the streets.
Sun King wants to brighten life for rural poorDesigning and distributing technically sophisticated yet durable solar lights has been a nifty accomplishment for Greenlight Planet, whose aim is to replace dangerous kerosene lamps.
Skoll World Forum 鈥� watch liveThe annual Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship April 9 to 11 brings together top thinkers from Malala Yousafzai to Richard Branson. Watch sessions live here.
Agnes Vertes tells her story as a Holocaust survivorAgnes Vertes, who survived the Nazi Holocaust in Europe as a child, is one of many Americans sharing their stories now, while they still can.
Difference MakerBob Hansman's inner-city art program became so much moreCity Faces, started as an arts activity for St. Louis kids, now includes help with homework, library skills, basic cooking, and other classes.
Erika Flint knows firsthand about giving dignity to the needyFlint is executive director of the Watertown (N.Y.) Urban Mission, which works quietly to help people get back on their feet so they can take care of themselves.
Rafiatu Lawal: education empowers African womenAfter persevering through her own challenges, Rafiatu Lawal now helps other young women in Ghana pursue their dreams.
Karen Lange: volunteering 'helped my soul and heart to heal'She volunteers at Baltimore's Moveable Feast, which provides nutritious food to home-bound people living with chronic physical problems.
If homeless people had a safe place to live, taxpayers could save millionsBy providing housing to its homeless, Charlotte, N.C., saved $1.8 million, research at the University of North Carolina鈥揅harlotte found.
Why Doug Friedlander moved from New York to the Mississippi Delta 鈥� and stayedThe three keys to successfully helping out in a new community, he says, are being humble, volunteering constantly 鈥� and sharing the credit.
Difference MakerSam Bracken's Orange Duffel Bag project helps at-risk former foster kidsBracken, himself a former foster child, started Orange Duffel Bag to offer life coaching and other help to teens dealing with the challenges of homelessness or foster care.
